GENERAL ELECTION

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 34, 4 November 1919, Page 8

GENERAL ELECTION

WELLINGTON SOUTH SEAT MR. W. S. BRUCE RETIRES Mr.'W. S. Bruce, who had announced that ho would stand in tho Reform in--.-terest for tho .Wellington South seat at tho ■ forthcoming general election, last "night informed about 100 electors who assembled' at St.. Thomas's Hall, Newtown, to hear his political views, that no was retiring from the contest. No .chairman presided nt the meeting. "I havo lo thank you for your presence liero this evening," said Mr. Bruce to the audience. . "Late this afternoon it was impressed on mo that I should re- ' tire from tlus contest. This was one i • of!the-bitterest disappointments of my life. It was more disappointing to me .- than if I bad fought the contest and been defeated. However, I have to : thank you for your presence here this i evening. I must express my gratitude ! ' to all those who have, encouraged me so far. Had wo been disposed lo go on with tho contest I am suro ■ that I would have had as much support as I ; deserved, but this evening I wjll just have to thank you for your -presence. On some other occasion I will be before

vou and I hope to merit your continence V iit th.lt time. On this occasion we will '.close- this meeting T don't think any i ■ / useful purpose will be served by stirring / •■#' ill-feeling at this time in this contest." THE WAIRARAPA SEAT ; . "■'•(. ' ADDRESS BY Ul?. HORNSBY. By Telegraph-Special Correspondent. Carterton, November 3. : Mr. J. T. M. Hornsby, M.P., Liberal candidate for..Wairarapn, .opened his campaign at Carterton to-night. In the course cf his remarks ho referred to the strange development in connection with the contest for tho AVairarapa seat. It was an understood thing that he was not ! to bo seriously opposed, and his opponent, Mr. A. D. M'Leod, had some months aao written to tho newspapers declaring that he would not be a candi- :• date, though pressed, nor did he think ■' anyone else should oppose the • sitting member. With the return of Sir Walter Buchanan the whole scene changed iun4 now Mr. M'Leod was out as an out-and-out supporter of Mr. Massey. At the same time Dame Rumour (ever a gay jade) had been at work, and there wero dark hints and much strong feeling worked up because it was said iUr. Hornsby had entered into a compact ■ with Mr. Massey. "The best answer to that." said Mr. Hornsby, "is fur- ' jiished bv the fact that there is a Mas- '" Bey candidate." If a compact had been ".• made of course there, would have been so other candidate but himself. He • had striven to create <an ideal. He : .. wished to see the evils of party elimin- : ated, but apparently the bulk of the 'people were still wedded to this fetish and so' there was nothing for it but a : fight to the finish between Liberals ami ... Reformers. At any rate tliere was no other honest stand to take than that of ' supporting one's own party; yet he ue- ' ■ lieved'there .was a, necessity for considering a condition of things which might easily ooine to pass. Let them imagine what would happen supposing that" neither Mr. Massey. nor Sir Joseph '■Ward, returned from the constituencies .with a sufficiently numerous following to lead the House. Were they tosquabble and fight and havo one general election after another with only a few months interval, as was the case at one time in the history of Australia?, Personally "he believed that the right way to do was.for the progressive men on both sides "of the House to get together and eliminate the hard-shelled ■ Tory on the one hand and the revolutionary Socialist on the other—for one was the creator oi tho other-and get down to solid work for the''development and advancement •ot . New Zealand. It was true, Mr. Hornsby continued, there was a class of man m --' . .this country who was a menaco to ■ so-ciety-a- danger to democracy. that class- of man must be firmly dealt with. - .But the task of reconstruction entailed tho drawing away from this dangerous ■ element of the great bulk of the workers, and by workers ho meant all -who wonted with either hand or brain. Both parry ""'- leaders' had 'pronounced against the Bolshevik element. Both would be sup...norted in their effort to save the coun- - 'try from the element of revolution, and ■ he claimed that the men in the House who had studied this question should be thoso to show the people who should be trusted with the problem. Mr Hornsby pronounced in favour ot shouldering the additional burden of increased support to tho British Navy, demanded Si large saving in land defence ' expenditure, opposed an expensive mili- ■ tary establishment and refused to have .-anything to do with the proposal to put .young mon .into camp for lour months ,-■- 'on-.their arriving at the age of 18 years. There wero industries which could witn advantage be nationalised, and among ' thoso was the coal industry- Under tJie rule of jirivnto enterprise at least a 0 p."- cent, of the coal had been lost, sacrificed "to make dividends. For that reason alone the limited coal measures should be conserved, and the only way m ' which-to do that was to nationalise the •mines .stive tlio men a share in their ' control, carry coal in our own ships nnii create a superannuation scheme for the : miners. The Meat Trust and other ■ monopolies wero passed 'm review, and •• Mrr-Hornsby- declared In? belief, that nnti 1 fines were eliminated and impni sonrfient-inflicted in every proven case ' tho:ininuitv of the trust would remain. -.-On the laud question Mr. Hornsby affirmed that aggregation would never he prevented except by statutory imitation, ■-• and ho believed in Mr. Whatman fl scheme for the settlement of soldiers, namely, the classification ot all lands and compulsory taking (if necessary) ot a. percentage of each man s land, saj where the total area reachr, three thousand acres. "I would take that ' land where it is necessary to do so comrmlsorily at tho Government valuation, -pirn 10 per Hornsby added. ' A. L. MONTEITH AT HATAITAI. The officinl Labour candidate Mr. A. IL Monteith.' addressed a mfle.ing last 'evening at the Bowling Green Pavilion, . Hataitai. Mr. W. G. Wngstaff presided The speaker addressee liimselt to the Question of the cost of living, and stated that the Queensland Labour bovernmeilt had handled the meat problem by operation of a State farm and btato butcher shops. Meat was selling at from 3Jd. to id. a lb. less in Queensland than in this country to-day. Ho novocuted the State regulating prices and entering into competition with private enterprise, so that the State would have a knowledse of the cost of the articles it was called upon to regulate. This had been done in Queensland, and could bo done here. The speaker said that the ferrv' service should belong to the State, and called attention to the Commonwealth shipping line, which had innoo a profit of .£930,332 in its first year's operations, and had up to December 16 last 6hown a orofit of .£2,0711,000; also State colliers should bo placed in commission at once. The question of profiteering was then dealt with, mid the speaker emoted a well-known firm''-' balance-sheet, and stated that since Iflit the firm had paid 1 per cent., and in 1010 it gave a - bonus of iO per cent., and in 1018 hau ifiOOO more in its reserve fund than when 1 it gavo the 10 per cent, bonus. 'J his I meant, stated the speaker, that another bonus of 40 per cent, could be paid at anv time. The question of public health should receivo more attention, and the Department of Public Health required a ' little "singer" put into it. The speaker ' stated that tho Act of 1918 was not being enforced. Mr. Monlcith read some <:orresnondence in reference to insanitary buildings in Upper Cuba Street, and snio' that thev wero a grave danger to the health and well-being of the community. - The ciuestion of education was to-day greatly a question of accommodation. In this respect the district was in great , need as the schools were overcrowded. ' This applied to Hataitai, Clyde flnay, Rosoneatli. and Maranui. In the lastmentioned place one c ass was housed in a passage, and in another building which was pressed "into tho service as a makeshift the ohildren had no playground, and played in the street. The candidate si.-oko for an hour and a quarter, and was accorded a vote of thanks and confidence.

TEE HURUNUI SEAT'. By Telegraph-Press Association. Christchurch, November 3. Mr. G. W. Forbes, M.P., tho Liberal candidate for Hurunu', addressed tho electors nt Cheviot to-night. Ho said he did not believe tho country could secure good government without party. He believed the best class of Labour members wero ciuito willing to work with the Liberal Party if it wero returned to power. •■ A number of Reform, mnlcoii- . tents were going to stand at the election • as Independents, and he believed it Sir ; Joseph Ward's party were not returned : in sufficient numbers to cany on the eovernmeiit of the country they would secure tho assistance of those members ; for this reason. He did not think nn- > other election would be necessary if no party was returned to power with an absolute majority. LABOUR CANDIDATE TOR FRANKLIN. uv Tcleirap'!.--!''''"" A«»ocl»tlnn. Auckland, November 3. Mr E. Piggott, president of tho Auckland branch of the Farmers Union, will contest the Franklin seat against Mr. Massey, in the interests of the New Zealand Labour Party THE THAMES SEAT. By TeleeraDh-Press Association. Thames, November 3. Four -candidates are now in the field for the Thames seat-Mr. Rhodes, the sitting member; Mr. W. J. M Cormiek, chairman of the Thames Hospital Board, and Official Liberal candidate; Mr. 1. F Long, Auckland. Independent Liberal; and Mr. J.-PiirbU, Labour. Lieut-Colonel G. Mitchell. D.S.O , who is a candidate for Wellington South electorate, will open his campaign on Thursday, when he will address the electors at the Newtown Library at 8 p.m.